Bias

   While I was in Europe last month I was able to get only a smattering of news from home. When I saw a report of Hillary's testimony before the House committee investigating Benghazi, I had to conclude that she had done very well, that her appearance had been a triumph. But when I got back and had a chance to review her testimony, I came to the opposite conclusion: Hillary had been proven to be a liar on one point after another. How could that be a triumph in the eyes of anyone but her mainstream media accomplices?

    Marco Rubio's comment in last week's Denver debate was on point: the mainstream media is a giant Super Pac for the Democratic Party. His accusation was confirmed by the CNBC debate moderators' abysmal performance that clearly showed a deep bias against Republican candidates.

    I think the American public is finally getting wise to the liberal media. When one moderator pursued his insulting questioning of Ben Carson, the audience booed loudly. “They get it,” responded a smiling Carson. The Democratic shills in the mainstream media don't. They don't understand that fair-minded Americans are fed up with their bias, their elitist condescension, and their utter blindness to the people's distrust of Hillary Clinton. 

    The American people want truthfulness, honesty, and trustworthiness in their leaders. They also want fairness from their reporters and commentators. They aren't getting it.

Appreciate

    Coming back from Italy after four weeks has made me appreciate a few things we take for granted. Here are a few.

    We Americans are used to our SUVs, our full-size sedans, and our pickups with beds that easily fit 4 x 8 panels of plywood. We like soft suspensions and automatic transmissions. Not so in Italy where all cars are small, ride hard, and likely have manual transmissions. And there are no F-150s. Why? Italian roads.

    We Americans are used to smooth surfaces, wide lanes, long stretches of straight roads, and interstates that crisscross the country. Italy has no highways to match ours. Their roads are narrower and often riddled with teeth-rattling potholes; country lanes are barely wide enough to allow small cars to pass each other; and most cities, especially in mountainous Tuscany, are connected by dangerous, curvy roads that call for both hands on the wheel.

    We Americans ride bikes mostly for exercise. In Italy cycling is a popular sport, with cycling clubs sponsoring competitions on almost every weekend. Moreover, bikes, motorcycles, and scooters are essential forms of transportation on roads with no shoulders and no bike lanes. There are tour buses, of course, but only tiny school buses for elementary school children. Many older kids must ride trains to regional high schools.

    We Americans enjoy the benefits of cheap energy. We pay $3 for a gallon of gas, and we maintain a constant comfort level in our homes with heat and air conditioning. Gasoline in Italy averages $7 a gallon, and windows commonly have shutters to combat summer heat and winter cold, because electricity and especially natural gas, which must be imported, are very expensive. It's the reason many people still hang their laundry out to dry on clotheslines and balconies.

    We Americans have fully stocked supermarket shelves and huge malls that meet our every need. We have rows of fast-food and other restaurants catering to every taste and budget. Except for an occasional McDonald in big cities, Italians bars (their fast-food restaurants) have limited offerings. But Italians do have great pizzas and gelatos to die for. As for supermarkets and malls, Italy has none to compare with Walmart and Chesapeake's Greenbriar complex.

    Does that mean that Americans have the best of everything? Hardly. I have seen nothing in this country to compare to the charm of Italy's medieval cities, its magnificent art and architecture, its serene landscapes, and its peaceful, clean, and safe environment. I will always remember the Italians I met for their grace and warmth, their zest for life, and their welcoming embrace.

    We Americans often place too much emphasis on our comfort and physical well-being. We need to be reminded from time to time that happiness is not guaranteed by material abundance, but is more often achieved in the simplest of ways, in opening our eyes to the beauty that surrounds us, in establishing new friendships and loving relationships, and in embracing life in all its rewarding aspects.

What Conversation?

     After being away in Italy for a month I was eager to catch up on the local news and turned to back issues of The Perquimans Weekly as soon as I could, especially to Letters to the Editor. I was happy to see further opinions on the new bridge, wind power, and the 2015 Business Expo. But I was dismayed to see the continued personal attacks on Warren Boiselle for his opinions on race (“Racist letters have no place in the paper.” “Racist beliefs not backed by any facts.”)

    In 1965 Daniel Patrick Moynihan issued a paper entitled “The Negro Family: The Case for National Action.” Even though Moynihan was a liberal with many ideas for helping solve the problems that plagued black families (poverty, unemployment, welfare dependency), he was excoriated by the liberal press for pointing out that at the core of these problems was the dysfunctional structure of the black family headed by unwed mothers. For his opinion Moynihan was branded a racist.

    Fifty years later Moynihan's reputation has been rehabilitated. He was right in predicting that as the rate of out-of-wedlock births increases, “most Negro youths are in danger of being caught up in the tangle of pathology that affects their world, and probably a majority are so entrapped.”

    Mr Boiselle's advice to blacks (finish school, get a job, and get married before making babies) may sound crude to some, but it happens to be right on the money. But for this, his detractors demand that he not be permitted to express his opinions in this paper.

    Pundits and talking heads often insist that we need to have a conversation on race relations if we are ever going to solve the problems that plague the black community. But how can we “have a conversation” if one side insists the other has no right to express a contrary opinion?

    I was further dismayed to see that the 10/21 edition on this paper carried not a single letter from local writers. Has the conversation ended? I hope not.